Sydney has been having a big problem with oversized trucks driving into tunnels that are too low. So Sydney needed a stop sign that is absolutely impossible to miss. Here it is and it’s amazing.P

It’s a curtain of water with a stop sign projected onto it.

I don’t know – it seems like they might scare the daylights out of the driver and cause even more havoc.

Frikkin Lasers

That’s a fucking awesome idea. If you watch the video you can see the driver ignored two other flashing STOP signs before the water curtain was manually triggered. Any driver dumb enough to ignore that deserves to be scared.

And besides, it’s a lot less scary than smashing your truck to pieces inside a tunnel.

http://thesoapvox.com ElVox

The sign lights up when a truck that will NOT fit under the bridge approaches…so…either the truck driver panic stops or crash stops…makes no difference at all in the havoc created.

http://tewha.net/ Steven Fisher

We have flashing lights near us. This water curtain is such a better idea.

http://www.peelman.us peelman

You’re neglecting the amount of damage to the tunnel that “crash stops” can cause.

http://twitter.com/cutterpillow Dave Thorup

Hell, for these morons that won’t stop their giant ass trucks they should install tire shredders. Maybe that’ll get em to pay attention & avoid the tunnels.

http://twitter.com/plaztiksoundz Rodrigo Freitas

So, an enormous sign that flashes when you’re that close to the tunnel entrance, while maintaining a steady stream of water pouring down on the pavement.

I’m guessing that meeting went like this…

“We have to make these truck drivers stop crashing on the top of the tunnels. Any solutions?”

“Yep. Let’s scare the crap out of them with a wall of light, forcing them to make an emergency break while aquaplaning on that sweet wet patch of tarmac we provide at the same time, so they can crash on the side wall instead leaving the tunnel intact!”

“Sounds good. Do it!”

http://twitter.com/hi_endian hi-endian

So crashing into the top of the tunnel is better than slamming on one’s brakes?? Derp

netflux

Sorry to ruin your little fantasy meeting, but the driver stopped well clear of the tunnel and water once they saw the stop sign. This is demonstrably preventing accidents, not causing them.

Klangoso

The curtain is in, or almost in, the tunnel. The driver won’t hit the wet patch without first crashing.

http://twitter.com/Moeskido Moeskido

And the representative from the Australian Trucking Association gamely tries to shift the blame to the construction of the tunnels. Nice.

http://mangochut.net/ mangochutney

It’s the old “We should’ve been consulted.” crap. Some things can’t be built differently. Some drivers either don’t know the area or try to take shortcuts because they’re under pressure.

It usually doesn’t work out.

My family has had rather unpleasant experiences with truckers whose companies didn’t provide them with truck GPS systems, but regular automobile GPSs. Our gutter has been torn-off three times already because a 40-ton truck decided to enter our street.

http://twitter.com/hi_endian hi-endian

Freakin rad!

Miles

So it’s better to have the truck crash into the tunnel than to scare the daylights out of the driver?

Seems like a great idea to me. You alert the driver, but if they’re not paying attention, they don’t actually crash into anything.

If you look at the full footage of this event you’ll see there are a TON more warning signs before this one, the truck driver ignored/missed all of them. I think you must have missed that.

http://mangochut.net/ mangochutney

I think the idea is great. The scare notwithstanding, from what I can tell, this sign is triggered manually by the tunnel authority to warn a specific driver. and the construction looked good, as the water seemed to flow down into the tunnel not onto the path in front.

Will

The flashing stop signs (and the sheet of water) are only triggered when sensors detect that the truck is too tall to safely pass through. At which point everyone needs to panic stop because if the truck fails to stop it could send debris everywhere when it crashes.

kibbles

“I don’t know – it seems like they might scare the daylights out of the driver and cause even more havoc.”

…you are correct — you dont know. you arent a transit expert. they are.